Hey Mr Bloodsucker, Sucks To Be You

Chapter 16

Hale ~#~

Cappa was unconscious. Probably the result of the large, blossoming bruise on his forehead. Dante looked as calm as ever, with a self-satisfied smirk plastered over his face, leant on the side of the table.

"Et voila." He threw out an arm in a flourish over Cappa's head. "It cost us Prince, but we've done it."

I held a glass under the cold tap and waited until it filled, then turned off the tap and poured the contents over Cappa's head. He didn't stir. I glanced, accusingly, at Dante, who held up his hands.

"I didn't do anything." He protested. "I knocked him out, I didn't kill him."

I nudged Cappa's hand with my foot. "I asked you to capture him, not incapacitate him."

"I didn't!" Dante said. "I knocked him out. He was struggling, I couldn't let him get away, could I?"

 I didn't reply. Instead I looked down at the unconscious vampire and tried to imagine what Mai must be feeling. Defeat? Anger?

"One other thing, Hale." Dante looked sheepish. "They had Dimitri with them. He's the one who staked Prince."

Wonderful. Could things get any worse? "Did Dimitri tell them anything?"

"I don't think even Dimitri would sink that low." He snorted, but he sounded unsure.

"Then how come you're not convincing me?" I let out my breath and turned round, silencing his reply. "It doesn't matter whether he's said anything or not, she'll come to look for Cappa all the same."

Down on the floor, Cappa stirred.

"Get him in the basement." I told Dante. "Clear the Clan outta there and lock them in the living room. We just need to wait for Mai and her watcher to turn up in time for next week, and it should all be set."

"You think they'll both come?"

"She's stubborn. She won't stay behind even if her tells her to. Now put Cappa in the basement."

Dante checked his fingers off his forehead in a mocking salute. "You called Penny and Tristan back in?" He asked, dragging Cappa across the kitchen floor by his arms.

"Yes." I answered simply. "Put him in the basement."

Cappa's feet vanished round the side of the door frame. I leant on the sink and stared up at the ceiling fan. Thank the stars I sounded a lot more sure than I felt.

Dimitri ~#~

She was a couple of miles behind, but I didn't have time to worry about her right now. I had to stop them from torturing Cappa first, because I knew that if they did it would be all the easier to draw her talents to the surface. I hadn't told Cappa and Mai what they really needed to know though, that once Mai had started to destroy it would be unstoppable, and it wouldn't only be vampires. She'd slaughter everything in her path if they let her.

How the hell did Halem plan to contain her rampage? He trusted me to tell me his plans, but not in that much detail. My phone rang and I flipped it open, holding it to my ear.

"Dimitri."

"I know who's phone this is." Muttered Mai's sour voice on the other end of the phone.

"You're not at the hotel are you?" I was surprised she'd called me if she was following, but then Mai wasn't exactly a predictable person.

The line was quiet for a moment. "Yes I am."

I rolled my eyes, but didn't press it. "What do you want?"

"How much blood did you take?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"So I know how many people to kill to get the reserves back."

I snorted. "Mai, if you're sensible with it there's enough there to last one person one week, ok? You won't have to kill anyone and blow your cover, I'll be back by then."

"What if I decide to come after you?" She sounded defiant.

"Then I'll just have to share my reserves with you."

I knew I sounded like some quiet, nerdy vampire who was afraid to hunt, but I genuinely didn't want my cover blown. We had blood, why kill for it?

She was quiet for a moment. "You won't stand a chance against Hale. He's too strong for you." Her tone was cynical.

"Hale's going to be in for a shock." I muttered. "Are we done? I'm driving."

"Where'd you get a car?"

Now I was hushed. "I...borrowed it."

"You stole it."

"Yes."

"Wow." I couldn't see her, but I knew if I could she'd have that disbelieving look on her face she wore when Cappa said something she thought was untrue. "Didn't think you had it in you."

I glanced down at the papers on the passenger seat that had belonged to the car's owner. "Well, be surprised then. Are we done?"

By way of an answer, the line went dead. I smirked and flipped the phone shut, tossing it on top of the papers. Loosening my grip around the wheel, I sat back a bit. I'd taped black bags to the windows to avoid obvious ashing, but luckily the windscreen was tinted so I was protected. All the glass in the back, however, remained un-tinted and un-taped, so the back seats were off limits.

The phone warbled again, and I retrieved it off the seat. Mai must've forgotten to tell me something.

"Yeah." I sighed.

"Hello Dimitri." Said a voice that wasn't Mai's.

I sat up. "Who is this?" I asked, suddenly alert.

"You don't recognise my voice?" The voice questioned. It was a stupid question to ask really, I knew exactly who it was. "Don't hang up." Continued Dante. "I'm gonna cut to the chase. We've got Cappa, and if you don't bring Mai to us we'll kill him."

"Huh." I replied, sounding calm. "You and I both know there's no chance in hell you'll kill Cappa before Mai gets to you. You need to kill him in front of her to fully push her talents. If she's not there, you can't kill him."

His end was quiet. "He doesn't need his hands." He hissed malevolently. "He doesn't need his feet. The only requirement is that he's alive, and you know that."

I swallowed. "I'm not listening to this."

I went to close the phone, but his voice echoed in my ear before I could. "You know what Hale's capable of." Dante reminded me. "Mai will come to us. Everyone knows. We will win, Dimitri. And when we do, you're the first traitor we'll burn."

He hung up. I looked at the phone like it had just bitten me. "Dammit." I groaned, abandoning the phone in the foot well. "I didn't ask to be a baby-sitter."